Anxious teacher greets students right after SEA

Described as a dedicated teacher by parents, teacher Wayne David Pitt stood outside the San Fernando Boys RC School waiting for his students who wrote the Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) examination yesterday.

When it was all over, Pitt's patience was rewarded as students ran into his open arms calling out "Sir we did it." There were peals of laughter as the boys jumped up and down to show their joy on completing the exams.

Parents also crowded the entrance of the school waiting to for their children. Many had their phones set for pictures. Stevyn Cambridge hugged his mother Samatha Cambridge saying he was overjoyed that his exams were done and over with.

"Finally I can go to the mall and play video games,” he said.

Luke Branker said the exams were do-able. "I finished in time and I attempted all my questions," he said.

Parents waiting for their children at Harris Promenade nodded their heads in agreement that it was a relief as the long hours of school had come to an end.

The elder Cambridge said, "Students were asked to come in at 7.30 am and leave at 4.30 pm every day with Saturday's lessons from 8 am to 11.30 am." The pressure was on to cover every detail of the syllabus, she said, as students spent endless hours inside and outside the classroom studying.

She said preparing for SEA exams took a toll of children.

“The pressure is on as everyone tries to out do each other in order to pass for their first choice.”

Another parent said her son woke up at around midnight and rushed to the bathroom with a towel to have his morning bath. “This never happened before,” the parent said. Her son, a student of San Fernando Boys RC School, could not sleep as he was worried about exams.

Grandparent Roy Carlton said the SEA, being a one-off exam, was never a good way to judge a child's intelligence. “You have to factor in stress, nervousness and anxiety. This exam is just not enough to judge a child’s intelligence."

Maya Singh said students should not have to do major exams for school placement.

“It should be a continuous flow till end of secondary school.”

She said teachers and parents tended to stress out the students to study for SEA, and many tended to forget what they learnt in quick time.

Students of St Gabriel Girls RC School were all smiles as they ran across Harris Promenade to meet their parents. Friends Jelissa Rahim, Sarayu Lecien and Dominique Ma Foucade hugged each other jumping up and down on the promenade.

Rahim said, "We are very happy that this exam is done. It was very hard putting in studies in all subjects for SEA."

The girls planned to enjoy the Easter vacation visiting the seaside and playing sports.